Monday, December 18, 2006

I just got an e-mail from my English friend dizzyfatplonka over the nature of the French in Canada. To someone who is unfamiliar with this country of ours, the French-English divide is most perplexing. Think of it as a dysfunctional marriage where you have a couple that mostly bicker and fight and yet the thought of divorce terrifies them. That's how it is with the francophonie in our midst. Truth of the matter is that I love this messed up country, even one that includes Quebec. However, my point is with them is that they share this sort of very snobbish European attitude towards the global jihad. It's like, "This is Bush's and Harper's problem. Why should we fight their war?". To say that this is terribly short-sighted is a massive understatement. To believe this, we would have to think that everything was OK prior to Bush assuming the presidency in 2000 and before 9/11. No, everything was not OK! I agree that perhaps singling out the French is probably unfair on my part. There are many of us who wish to join the surrender and appeasement chorus, including anglophones. But when Mr. Duceppe tries to tell his people that they can separate from Canada without cost or opt out of the global jihad being waged against us, I tend to get a wee bit upset. I realize also that there are many others who are being terribly flippant about this, a sort of laissez-faire attitude that we can manage this war, that simply muddling through will be enough. I dare say it will not. There can be no surrender. There is nothing that we can do that will ever placate the enemy to his perfect satisfaction. And it's up to us, francophone and anglophone to stand shoulder to shoulder in this country if we wish to defeat the likes of al-Qaida. Anything less than victory will not do!

Hope that sort of answers your question DFP. Always glad to be of help!

Anyways, there's lots of Canadiana here for you. Let me congratulate Stephen Harper for being voted Canada's top news maker for 2006. Last January, the Harper Conservatives went from being the opposition to forming the next Parliament, albeit in a minority role. The real test, I believe, will come early in 2007 as Canadians trudge (heads lowered, shoulders hunched) to the polls once more. As it stands right now, the Liberals and the Conservatives are fairly even. What's interesting is that they both have popularity numbers below the 40% threshhold. Should any party show forty percent (or more) support nationally, then it is likely that they will be the ones forming the next majority government.

This country I believe does want someone who has a vision and an idea of what Canada should be both domestically and abroad. Mr. Harper should put the focus away from mere grubby tactics and show that the Conservaties have a clear long-term strategy to defeat Islamic extremism. Take the Bloc for instance. Mr. Duceppe is now saying we should just try to reconstruct Afghanistan without any thought towards security. Huh? By telling Canadians that we are denying the Taliban sanctuary and taking the fight to the enemy is how you help in reconstructing a country! We can argue tactics all day long but the Conservatives must keep strategy first and foremost. If Mr. Harper chooses the high road, he just might come out with a majority. If he tries to win a mud-slinging contest or gets bogged down in the details he will fare badly. Already 2007 is looking more and more interesting. I cannot wait!

Let's look at some international news that has piqued my interest recently.

Money, Money, Money!

I've reported on both these before but I would like to update you on them as I believe it is of incredible prophetic importance. Basically put, Europe's fortunes are waxing while America's financial role is waning. The New York Stock Exchange and Euronext NV are rapidly coming together as a trans-atlantic stock exchange. This was unthinkable a mere ten years ago! There are a few factors which I believe are the reasons God is removing his protective hand over America. The 9/11 attacks and the subsequent funding for the war in Iraq has really put a dint in America's economy. Tourism has suffered as more and more (mostly silly and ineffective) rules have come into play when getting on an airplane. Any Muslim with a full beard and a prayer cap now gets looked at cross-eyed by everybody. I also think that America's spending under the Bush regime is spiralling out of control. Drunken sailors on shore leave have more restraint than what Congress is laying out. There is also a moral element to this as more Americans are leaving their Christian heritage and adopting a more materialistic worldview. Not cool with the Big Guy Upstairs if you know what I mean.

Here's another thing about the Iraqi war that I think most people missed. As I have stated before, the real reason why Bush went ahead with the cynically named 'Operation Enduring Freedom' had little to do with Saddam's notional nukes he was supposed to have. Nor was it over human rights, even though Saddam and his sons were indeed bona-fide monsters. No, the real reason was that Saddam wanted to sell his oil in euros rather than U.S. dollars, a direct challenge to the Bretton Woods system. Remember, this is the reason why the U.S. Congress can rack up huge deficits. So long as the world is forced to do business with America to get its dollars to buy oil, the sky's the limit. Now it appears that the Iranians are taking their cue from their one-time mortal enemy and doing the same. The big difference is that the Iranians are in a much stronger position than Iraq should America take military action against them. Should other oil-exporting countries follow en masse the result will be a financial apocalypse for North American markets. And just who is America's biggest trading partner? Why, Canada of course!

Ah Christmas! Chestnuts roasting on a open fire. Singing carols out of tune. Donning we now our gay apparel! And you certainly can't have Christmas without some Islamic yob threatening jihad against those who like to celebrate the season. Bunch of Grinches!

I came across this interesting article from Der Spiegel. Basically any kind of nuke exchange in the ME (or elsewhere) would have disasterous climatic consequences far away from the battlefield. A must read.